More questions than answers as baseball begins

Coulda sworn that darn groundhog signaled six more weeks of winter, not 10.

This is what we get for banking on a rodent.

No matter. The extra downtime between canceled high school baseball games leaves time to ponder 10 questions concerning teams around the Fox Valley as the season gets off to its intermittent start.

1. How good is Prairie Ridge?

Baseball America ranked the Wolves No. 28 in the United States with defending Class AA state champion Neuqua Valley the next highest team from Illinois at No. 41.

The top of the Wolves' rotation is as good as they come with submariner T.J. Swank (Coastal Carolina) and Mike Heesch (Nebraska) heading the pack. Each threw 3 shutout innings in Wednesday's 8-0 season-opening victory at Romeoville.

Ultra-talented senior hitter, Nick Martini (Kansas State), will try his luck on the mound again for the first time since his freshman season. If he falters in any way, Sam Zagone and sophomore Ross Vance are poised to step in and perform.

Saying Prairie Ridge's talent runs sorta deep is like saying Jessica Biel is sorta cute. It's a bit of an understatement. But will this be the talented team that ends PR's sectional drought? The Wolves won seven straight regional titles between 2000-06 but never advanced past a sectional title game.

2. How good is Westminster Christian?

You'll see a few losses on the books at the end of this season for the Class 1A Warriors, mainly because they are scheduled to take on seven Class 3A teams in the wake of last season's Class A Elite Eight appearance.

But against schools their own size, the Warriors are tough to pick against, led by the impossible breaking ball of healthy ace Ben Palmer, catcher Carter Ward, and shortstop Cory Hodge. Each of these guys could start for any team in this area.

3. Can Dundee-Crown send coach Fred Bencriscutto go out a winner?

The gut says it won't be easy considering the Chargers graduated three starting pitchers responsible for 25 of the 28 victories amassed by last year's Class AA Elite Eight team.

However, teams on missions have been known to achieve surprising results, and this year's mission is to send Bencriscutto, an 18-year coaching veteran, out with a warm, fuzzy feeling.

IHSA logistics might help in that regard. Dundee-Crown was named a regional host within the Class 4A Rockford Guilford sectional when postseason assignments were released on Friday. To win a regional, the Chargers will have to beat two of their Valley Division rivals: Jacobs, Cary-Grove or Crystal Lake South.

It would be poetic to see Bencriscutto square off one last time in the regional title game against good friend Don Sutherland, Cary-Grove's 21-year coaching veteran, who has matched wits with Bencriscutto every year since 1991.

4. Is there a more exciting player to watch than Bartlett's Ryan Walker?

The definition of energy and hustle, Walker is the key to Bartlett's offensive engine.

Last season as a sophomore he hit .419 (39-for-93) with 45 total bases, 5 steals and 15 RBI. He and Bradley recruit, lefty pitcher Mike Derby (4-4, 58 strikeouts in 50½ innings), are two reasons the Hawks intend to challenge in the tough Upstate Eight Conference. Speaking of the UEC …

5. How great is the Upstate Eight in 2008?

With defending Class AA champion Neuqua Valley returning its starting pitching staff intact and St. Charles North loaded with center fielder Jake Thornton (Illinois State), infielder/pitcher Brian de La Torriente (Northern Iowa), and pitcher Sam Weinberg (Western Michigan) headlining nine returning seniors, the top of the conference has a razor-sharp edge.

The middle of the league isn't dull either. Competitive teams at Bartlett, St. Charles East, Lake Park, Larkin and Waubonsie Valley will add a postseason feel to many regular-season league games.

Ah, but let's not forget about South Elgin …

6. Can South Elgin take the next step?

The Storm finished its first varsity season 10-24 last year without benefit of seniors, but they were rarely blown out. Many games were tied or competitive through the fifth inning before small breakdowns proved costly.

A year older, a year wiser, and another year of mentoring from coach Jim Kating, who caught in the A's and Dodgers organizations, could make the Storm a treacherous speed bump in a conference full of Ferraris.

7. How much of an effect will new coach Eric Sanders and his staff have on Jacobs?

The Golden Eagles demonstrated how tough they can play last summer when they finished third in the state tournament.

Now comes Sanders, a former University of Michigan catcher, who is surrounded by three other coaches who have played college baseball. Personal instruction of that magnitude can only enhance a talented squad already brimming with confidence on the heels of its great summer.

8. Can Burlington Central do it again?

It's not going to be easy for the Rockets to win a fourth straight title in the Big Northern's Eastern Division, but third-year coach Kyle Nelson, who pitched at Hinsdale South and later for Valparaiso, knows how to get the most out of his clubs.

The Rockets will miss graduated starting pitchers Brad Porto and Eric Schafernak, but seniors like Bryan Bell and Drew Perly will concede nothing to Harvard, Richmond-Burton, Marengo and Hampshire.

9. Will opposing teams find Hampshire's home field?

The Whips have never had a true home field and won't until next spring when they move into their sweet new digs at the new Hampshire High School, where the dugouts are already in place.

For years they've played at Seyller Park, a few blocks east of the high school. But Seyller Park became Seyller Lake after last August's extreme flooding. Kids were still ice skating in the outfield as of February.

So the Whips have moved their home games to a field within the Cambridge Lakes subdivision in Pingree Grove, located just east of Illinois Route 47 on Route. 72. Driving to every home game isn't ideal, but the Whip-Purs will only have to endure their nomadic existence for one season.

10. Can Elgin Community College do it again?

The most successful baseball program in this area is located at ECC. Coach Bill Angelo's Machine on McLean has made four straight appearances in the NJCAA Division II World Series -- the only junior college in America to do so -- and begins the year ranked No. 4 in the country.

If you've never seen an ECC game, head over to their beautiful field on a game day and enjoy some of the most entertaining baseball in the area played by a team of former area high school all-stars like Trevor Rutkowski and Andrew Burkett from Prairie Ridge, Brad Porto, Scott Holmer and Josh Ehlers from Burlington Central, Elgin's Rob Quick, Ben Vincent from Larkin, Bob Diebold from Streamwood, Kyle Kukulski of Crystal Lake South and Matt Revelle from Jacobs.

And if you see that groundhog, tell that wannabe meteorologist I've got a bone to pick.